The pros and cons of an "all Indian" I-League

The AIFF is intrigued by the concept of an “all Indian” I-League

The majority of Indian Clubs have proposed a “foreigner free” I-League during the last AIFF meet. Last Tuesday, there was an I-League workshop in the capital city. The representatives of the reigning champions Mohun Bagan suggested something out of the blue, no one saw it coming. There was a proposal made by them to make the I-League an all Indian affair.

The Mohun Bagan official said that they do not have any problem if foreigner’s were not allowed to play from the next season, and that it would also benefit Indian football, as majority of the clubs are dependent on players from abroad for their performance. To everyone’s surprise, their arch-rivals East Bengal FC, Pune FC, Bharat FC and most of the other clubs supported Mohun Bagan’s proposal.

The AIFF could not proceed with the particular matter as it was not a part of agenda. Yet they were quite pleased with the idea of such a league. An AIFF official said, “It’s not a bad idea from soccer point of view, but we have look at the marketing factor of the I-League too.”

Currently, four foreigners are allowed to play in the starting XI of a club, which includes an Asian player and a marquee player. In another major tournament organized by AIFF, the ISL, overseas players have been the backbone of the teams. Six players are allowed to play in the starting XI of a team in an ISL encounter.

There is also another factor which makes the clause more favorable for the clubs. The rising cost of running a team and even higher price for paying the marquee and foreign players are becoming a huge burden for the clubs. Also, the present Indian coach Stephen Constantine may welcome this change for the sake of Indian football.

Since the incorporation NFL (then) in 1996-97, the national coaches have always pointed out the adverse effects of having overseas players in the league, as the team’s become too dependent on them. Yet, the AIFF have never thought of an “all Indian” I-League.

For a team, loitering in the last quarter of the FIFA rankings, it is high time that India did something for its football fans. India has been tagged as “The sleeping giants of World Football” for many years. The time had come for the giants to rise from their slumber and pave their way to the limelight of World Football.

There were times when people used to boast about the quality of Indian players and the National Team. They had reasons, Indian Football team was a dominant force in Asia during the 50’s and 60’s, they made commendable performances in Olympics as well as other tournaments. But, the standard of Indian Football had faded away as years rolled on.

India even finds it difficult to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup. They qualified for the AFC Asian Cup 2011 after a gap of 27 years, and also failed to qualify for the 2015 edition. The 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign has not been fruitful either, so far. India suffered defeats to Oman and lowly-ranked Guam. India will be hoping to give their best in the remaining qualifying matches.